Downton Abbey

[Deb in IA]

Well written!

Thanks for reading! Sorry it is long!

 

[ckay87]

Can't find the fake Facebook recap for this week! I look forward to that as much as the show! I wondered whether they would be able to create a funny one for the episode of Sybill's death, but that was one of the best.

 

[Deb in IA]

Question:

What was the castle that was used for the Scottish hunting lodge of the Flintshire's?

And don't you all think it looks just like Cinderella's Castle at Disney World?

 

[Kewz1]

Question:

What was the castle that was used for the Scottish hunting lodge of the Flintshire's?

Inveraray Castle.

Started planning my next trip to the UK after seeing that beauty!

Kristen

 

[lovesmurfs]

 

[MomofKatie]

I am really looking forward to the next series. Although with ratings dropping, many here wonder whether series four will be the last series.

Ratings haven't dropped at all stateside! the Season 3 finale got the highest ratings yet- 8.2 million viewers. That's about 4 times the regular number of viewers for any other prime time PBS show.

 

[AndreaDM]

Just finished the Season 3 finale with DD - a day late and a dollar short!

We got all 3 seasons on DVD, and we've only been watching since Christmas. Here are my thoughts:

I do love the show. In general, I think the entire world and stories about Downton are fantastic, but I have a few bones to pick with Jullian Fellowes, the writer.

I think 2 major deaths in the same season was a bit much. I understand that the actors wanted to leave, but there must have been more creative ways to end a character than always having them kick the bucket. It just seems to be a bit lazy on the writer's part to use the same device twice, in such a short time.

Also, DD and I noted that he "borrows" themes and stories from other sources. For example, Ethyl's story sounds a lot like Fantine in Les Miserables, no? And Michael Gregson the newspaper editor/Edith's new boyfriend - I suppose he has read "Jane Eyre"? If the newspaper offices get burned down and he goes blind, I'll really be suspicious.

And a minor issue, but did he have to give the under-butler and the former chauffer such similar names - Thomas Barrow and Tom Branson? Completely different characters, but sometimes, in speech, we get them confused.

Now, as for Thomas, I am liking his story more and more. Yes, I did almost feel sorry for him when he was about to get fired without a reference, after being set up by that awful O'Brien. And bailing out drunk Jimmy at the fair only shows that he still loves him, even though he knows that love will never be reciprocated. The fact that he DOES love someone, other than himself, almost redeems his other badness - stealing the wine and locking poor Isis in the shed.

O'Brien, on the other hand, seems to have no discernable goodness. Zero. Other than being almost sorry for the soap incident - but that was only because she thought she would get in trouble, rather than any real remorse.

Not sure I like the new characters. It is getting hard to keep track of who likes who - I think Daisy likes Alfred, who likes Ivy, and Ivy likes Jimmy. Not sure who Jimmy likes, but we know it is not Thomas. But at least they are friends now - that was nice.

As for the "upstairs" folks, of course, I love Granny. Loved Mrs. Levinson (Shirley MacLaine) too, but I was sad she was only in the first two episodes. I was hoping we would see her again at Sybil's funeral.

I also thought that Mary would be nicer to poor Edith after Sybil's death, but that only lasted a short while. Maybe she will be a little softer around the edges, now that she is both a mother and a widow. Edith needs to find just ONE boyfriend that will actually work out.

The major beef I have with Lord Grantham's character was his "where-did-that-come-from" affair with the maid Jane. That came completely out of left field and made me wonder why Fellowes put that in. Also, I'd like him to be a bit more remorseful about both the affair and his loss of their money and almost losing the estate. With Matthew gone, I hope Tom will keep Lord Grantham from making more bad decisions - did you all catch that reference to "Charles Ponzi"?

I used to like Cora, but she's getting a bit annoying - she always seems like she is talking to a kindergartener.

Anna and Bates seem almost boring now that all their dramatics are over. And a bit too lovey-dovey - I'd like to see their first fight!

And Carson - well, the scene with him holding baby Sybie was just too cute.

All in all, I still love the show and can't wait to see Season 4, but I do hope the writer stops with the cheap plot twists - Mrs. Hughes has cancer! No, she doesn't! - and comes up with more original story lines.

Have you watched the 1970s Upstairs Downstairs show? JF has ripped off every story line from that series, down to the grocer falling for the cook but ending up being a cad. Seriously, watch the show on Netflix.

 

[smschex]

Have you watched the 1970s Upstairs Downstairs show? JF has ripped off every story line from that series, down to the grocer falling for the cook but ending up being a cad. Seriously, watch the show on Netflix.

Didn't Lady Marjorie of Upstairs/Downstairs go down on the Titanic? I had forgotten how much I liked that show too!

 

[PaulaSB12]

Just finished the Season 3 finale with DD - a day late and a dollar short!

We got all 3 seasons on DVD, and we've only been watching since Christmas. Here are my thoughts:

I do love the show. In general, I think the entire world and stories about Downton are fantastic, but I have a few bones to pick with Jullian Fellowes, the writer.

I think 2 major deaths in the same season was a bit much. I understand that the actors wanted to leave, but there must have been more creative ways to end a character than always having them kick the bucket. It just seems to be a bit lazy on the writer's part to use the same device twice, in such a short time.

Also, DD and I noted that he "borrows" themes and stories from other sources. For example, Ethyl's story sounds a lot like Fantine in Les Miserables, no? And Michael Gregson the newspaper editor/Edith's new boyfriend - I suppose he has read "Jane Eyre"? If the newspaper offices get burned down and he goes blind, I'll really be suspicious.

And a minor issue, but did he have to give the under-butler and the former chauffer such similar names - Thomas Barrow and Tom Branson? Completely different characters, but sometimes, in speech, we get them confused.

Now, as for Thomas, I am liking his story more and more. Yes, I did almost feel sorry for him when he was about to get fired without a reference, after being set up by that awful O'Brien. And bailing out drunk Jimmy at the fair only shows that he still loves him, even though he knows that love will never be reciprocated. The fact that he DOES love someone, other than himself, almost redeems his other badness - stealing the wine and locking poor Isis in the shed.

O'Brien, on the other hand, seems to have no discernable goodness. Zero. Other than being almost sorry for the soap incident - but that was only because she thought she would get in trouble, rather than any real remorse.

Not sure I like the new characters. It is getting hard to keep track of who likes who - I think Daisy likes Alfred, who likes Ivy, and Ivy likes Jimmy. Not sure who Jimmy likes, but we know it is not Thomas. But at least they are friends now - that was nice.

As for the "upstairs" folks, of course, I love Granny. Loved Mrs. Levinson (Shirley MacLaine) too, but I was sad she was only in the first two episodes. I was hoping we would see her again at Sybil's funeral.

I also thought that Mary would be nicer to poor Edith after Sybil's death, but that only lasted a short while. Maybe she will be a little softer around the edges, now that she is both a mother and a widow. Edith needs to find just ONE boyfriend that will actually work out.

The major beef I have with Lord Grantham's character was his "where-did-that-come-from" affair with the maid Jane. That came completely out of left field and made me wonder why Fellowes put that in. Also, I'd like him to be a bit more remorseful about both the affair and his loss of their money and almost losing the estate. With Matthew gone, I hope Tom will keep Lord Grantham from making more bad decisions - did you all catch that reference to "Charles Ponzi"?

I used to like Cora, but she's getting a bit annoying - she always seems like she is talking to a kindergartener.

Anna and Bates seem almost boring now that all their dramatics are over. And a bit too lovey-dovey - I'd like to see their first fight!

And Carson - well, the scene with him holding baby Sybie was just too cute.

All in all, I still love the show and can't wait to see Season 4, but I do hope the writer stops with the cheap plot twists - Mrs. Hughes has cancer! No, she doesn't! - and comes up with more original story lines.

It wasn't easy finding a husband after WW1 there was a whole generation of men lost in the war and it meant there were vastly more women available to marry than women!

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-481882/Condemned-virgins-The-million-women-robbed-war.html
One hazy morning in 1917 the senior mistress of Bournemouth High School For Girls stood up in front of the assembled sixth form and announced to her hushed audience: "I have come to tell you a terrible fact.
"Only one out of ten of you girls can ever hope to marry. This is not a guess of mine. It is a statistical fact.
"Nearly all the men who might have married you have been killed. You will have to make your way in the world as best you can.
"The war has made more openings for women than there were before. But there will still be a lot of prejudice. You will have to fight. You will have to struggle."
Long terms statistics show that 35 per cent of women failed to marry during their 'reproductive' years
Sitting in the assembly hall among her shocked and silent schoolfellows was 17-year-old Rosamund Essex.
She was never to forget those chilling words, recalling: "It was one of the most fateful statements of my life."
When Rosamund, who never married, wrote her memoirs 60 years later she accepted that her teacher's pronouncement had been prophetic.
"How right she was," she recalled. "Only one out of every ten of my friends has ever married.
"Quite simply, there was no one available. We had to face the fact that our lives would be stunted in one direction.
"We should never have the kind of happy homes in which we ourselves had been brought up.
"There would be no husband, no children, no sexual outlet, no natural bond of man and woman. It was going to be a struggle indeed."
Rosamund, and so many of the classmates who sat with her that morning, joined what came to be known as The Surplus Two Million - women whose dreams of marriage and children died alongside their men.
World War I deprived Britain of three-quarters-of-a-million soldiers, leaving as many more incapacitated.
In 1919 a generation of women who unquestioningly believed marriage to be their birthright discovered there were simply not enough men to go around.
The make-up of British society had changed irrevocably - as Isie Russell-Stevenson discovered to her horror.
Towards the end of the war in 1918 she received a message to say that her husband, Hamilton, would be returning home from the Front.
Wearing her prettiest dress, Isie waited eagerly at the docks for his boat to arrive.
But the dreamed-of moment turned suddenly to nightmare.
Hamilton appeared on a stretcher, mangled and clearly dying. Isie took him home and nursed him and not long afterwards he died.
Isie mourned - nevertheless she was young, and the following year she was invited to a ball in London.
She willed herself into the mood, did her hair and put on her ballgown.
But when she walked into the ballroom, the party seemed to be women-only. "But if it's a hen party," she thought to herself, mystified.
"Why is every woman in full evening dress?"
At last, through the crowd, she spotted a man in tails... and again through the crowd another...and then a couple more.
And gradually she realised that this pathetic clutch of males were the men who were left.
There were about ten women to every man.

 

[AndreaDM]

Didn't Lady Marjorie of Upstairs/Downstairs go down on the Titanic? I had forgotten how much I liked that show too!

She sure did, and I read the actress wanted to come back to the show, but she couldn't because they killed her off. When the girl who played Elizabeth wanted to leave the show they shipped her off to America and she got a gratuitous mention once in a while.

 

[meggiebeth]

Ratings haven't dropped at all stateside! the Season 3 finale got the highest ratings yet- 8.2 million viewers. That's about 4 times the regular number of viewers for any other prime time PBS show.

I know it has been successful in the US, but it is a UK show and the ratings have dropped noticeably here, with many saying that Julian Fellowes has run out of good storylines and the show is not what it once was.

It wasn't easy finding a husband after WW1 there was a whole generation of men lost in the war and it meant there were vastly more women available to marry than women!

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-481882/Condemned-virgins-The-million-women-robbed-war.html
One hazy morning in 1917 the senior mistress of Bournemouth High School For Girls stood up in front of the assembled sixth form and announced to her hushed audience: "I have come to tell you a terrible fact.
"Only one out of ten of you girls can ever hope to marry. This is not a guess of mine. It is a statistical fact.
"Nearly all the men who might have married you have been killed. You will have to make your way in the world as best you can.
"The war has made more openings for women than there were before. But there will still be a lot of prejudice. You will have to fight. You will have to struggle."
Long terms statistics show that 35 per cent of women failed to marry during their 'reproductive' years
Sitting in the assembly hall among her shocked and silent schoolfellows was 17-year-old Rosamund Essex.
She was never to forget those chilling words, recalling: "It was one of the most fateful statements of my life."
When Rosamund, who never married, wrote her memoirs 60 years later she accepted that her teacher's pronouncement had been prophetic.
"How right she was," she recalled. "Only one out of every ten of my friends has ever married.
"Quite simply, there was no one available. We had to face the fact that our lives would be stunted in one direction.
"We should never have the kind of happy homes in which we ourselves had been brought up.
"There would be no husband, no children, no sexual outlet, no natural bond of man and woman. It was going to be a struggle indeed."
Rosamund, and so many of the classmates who sat with her that morning, joined what came to be known as The Surplus Two Million - women whose dreams of marriage and children died alongside their men.
World War I deprived Britain of three-quarters-of-a-million soldiers, leaving as many more incapacitated.
In 1919 a generation of women who unquestioningly believed marriage to be their birthright discovered there were simply not enough men to go around.
The make-up of British society had changed irrevocably - as Isie Russell-Stevenson discovered to her horror.
Towards the end of the war in 1918 she received a message to say that her husband, Hamilton, would be returning home from the Front.
Wearing her prettiest dress, Isie waited eagerly at the docks for his boat to arrive.
But the dreamed-of moment turned suddenly to nightmare.
Hamilton appeared on a stretcher, mangled and clearly dying. Isie took him home and nursed him and not long afterwards he died.
Isie mourned - nevertheless she was young, and the following year she was invited to a ball in London.
She willed herself into the mood, did her hair and put on her ballgown.
But when she walked into the ballroom, the party seemed to be women-only. "But if it's a hen party," she thought to herself, mystified.
"Why is every woman in full evening dress?"
At last, through the crowd, she spotted a man in tails... and again through the crowd another...and then a couple more.
And gradually she realised that this pathetic clutch of males were the men who were left.
There were about ten women to every man.

That is a fascinating article, thank you for sharing. I really felt for poor Isie. I had no idea that these sorts of problems were faced!

Meg~ Sent from my iPhone using DISBoards

 

[Deb in IA]

Inveraray Castle.

Started planning my next trip to the UK after seeing that beauty!

Kristen

Thanks!
Their website is amazing!

http://www.inveraray-castle.com/

Hilarious! I'm sure PBS will play off the popularity of Downton for their Festival campaign!

Have you watched the 1970s Upstairs Downstairs show? JF has ripped off every story line from that series, down to the grocer falling for the cook but ending up being a cad. Seriously, watch the show on Netflix.

Thanks for the recommendation!
I remember my mom watching this, and I wasn't interested at the time, but wll definitely check it out now!

It wasn't easy finding a husband after WW1 there was a whole generation of men lost in the war and it meant there were vastly more women available to marry than women!

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-481882/Condemned-virgins-The-million-women-robbed-war.html
One hazy morning in 1917 the senior mistress of Bournemouth High School For Girls stood up in front of the assembled sixth form and announced to her hushed audience: "I have come to tell you a terrible fact.
"Only one out of ten of you girls can ever hope to marry. This is not a guess of mine. It is a statistical fact.
"Nearly all the men who might have married you have been killed. You will have to make your way in the world as best you can.
"The war has made more openings for women than there were before. But there will still be a lot of prejudice. You will have to fight. You will have to struggle."
Long terms statistics show that 35 per cent of women failed to marry during their 'reproductive' years
Sitting in the assembly hall among her shocked and silent schoolfellows was 17-year-old Rosamund Essex.
She was never to forget those chilling words, recalling: "It was one of the most fateful statements of my life."
When Rosamund, who never married, wrote her memoirs 60 years later she accepted that her teacher's pronouncement had been prophetic.
"How right she was," she recalled. "Only one out of every ten of my friends has ever married.
"Quite simply, there was no one available. We had to face the fact that our lives would be stunted in one direction.
"We should never have the kind of happy homes in which we ourselves had been brought up.
"There would be no husband, no children, no sexual outlet, no natural bond of man and woman. It was going to be a struggle indeed."
Rosamund, and so many of the classmates who sat with her that morning, joined what came to be known as The Surplus Two Million - women whose dreams of marriage and children died alongside their men.
World War I deprived Britain of three-quarters-of-a-million soldiers, leaving as many more incapacitated.
In 1919 a generation of women who unquestioningly believed marriage to be their birthright discovered there were simply not enough men to go around.
The make-up of British society had changed irrevocably - as Isie Russell-Stevenson discovered to her horror.
Towards the end of the war in 1918 she received a message to say that her husband, Hamilton, would be returning home from the Front.
Wearing her prettiest dress, Isie waited eagerly at the docks for his boat to arrive.
But the dreamed-of moment turned suddenly to nightmare.
Hamilton appeared on a stretcher, mangled and clearly dying. Isie took him home and nursed him and not long afterwards he died.
Isie mourned - nevertheless she was young, and the following year she was invited to a ball in London.
She willed herself into the mood, did her hair and put on her ballgown.
But when she walked into the ballroom, the party seemed to be women-only. "But if it's a hen party," she thought to herself, mystified.
"Why is every woman in full evening dress?"
At last, through the crowd, she spotted a man in tails... and again through the crowd another...and then a couple more.
And gradually she realised that this pathetic clutch of males were the men who were left.
There were about ten women to every man.

I remember them mentioning the shortage of men on Downton as well.

Poor Edith. Not many prospects left for her.

 

[tink20]

Can't find the fake Facebook recap for this week! I look forward to that as much as the show! I wondered whether they would be able to create a funny one for the episode of Sybill's death, but that was one of the best.

I think it just came out today.....enjoy

http://www.happyplace.com/21471/downton-abbey-facebook-recap-season-3-episode-7

 

[meggiebeth]

Thanks!
Their website is amazing!

http://www.inveraray-castle.com/

Hilarious! I'm sure PBS will play off the popularity of Downton for their Festival campaign!

Thanks for the recommendation!
I remember my mom watching this, and I wasn't interested at the time, but wll definitely check it out now!

I remember them mentioning the shortage of men on Downton as well.

Poor Edith. Not many prospects left for her.

Edith is lovely and I really hope she can find a husband. The editor really liked her. She does deserve one- she is actually quite pretty and very sweet and thoughtful.

Meg~ Sent from my iPhone using DISBoards

 

[hops&dreams]

I think it just came out today.....enjoy

http://www.happyplace.com/21471/downton-abbey-facebook-recap-season-3-episode-7

I LOVE these!!! They are so hilarious! But this one didn't have my favorite exchange of the episode, when they are eating breakfast and discussing the origin of Shrimpie's name.

Sent from my iPhone using DISBoards

 

[PaulaSB12]

Another member of Downtown Abbey is leaving

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbi...maid-Sarah-OBrien-leave-hit-period-drama.html
Siobhan Finneran who plays Sarah OBrian is leaving.

 

[Hoodie]

Another member of Downtown Abbey is leaving

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbi...maid-Sarah-OBrien-leave-hit-period-drama.html
Siobhan Finneran who plays Sarah OBrian is leaving.

I actually thought they were setting that up in the last episode. She mentioned she really wanted to travel and after the Scottish lady's maid pulled the alcohol stunt she said she "didn't feel any loyalty to her" and went to speak to Shrimpie's wife. I thought they'd end up switching lady's maids so O'Brien could go to India.

 

[tink20]

Well that's just great. Why are all of my favorites leaving?

 

[Family Fun Mom]

I hope they finally expose O'Brian for the incident with "her Ladyship's soap." She is so rotten, I'd like to see her suffer some.

 

[PollyannaMom]

Another member of Downtown Abbey is leaving

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbi...maid-Sarah-OBrien-leave-hit-period-drama.html
Siobhan Finneran who plays Sarah OBrian is leaving.

I can't say I'll miss O'Brien. She was my least favorite character.